May I respectfully suggest that you get hold of the book The Mainstreaming of New Age by Manuel Vasouez, published by Pacific Press and read chapter 9. The Lure of New Age Holistic Health/Medicine.

Thanks, Zita!

I will see if I can track down that book.

Here is an excerpt from the book Mainstreaming of the New Age: ". The dilutions are so astronomical that not even one molecule of the original medicine left.

So if not even one molecule of the original medicine is left, what is it that cures the patients? According to the founder, it is the "spirit- like essence. Hahnemann himself believed that there is virtually no chance that even one molecule of original substance would remain after extreme dilutions. But he said that the vigorous shaking or pulverizing with each step of dilution leaves behind a spirit-like essence which cures by reviving the body's "vita! force" (italics added) Astronomical dilutions that are said to contain not even one molecule of the original substance have to be the most incredible placebo to cure illnesses in modern times. Use of them is comparable to treating one's malaria by emptying an eight-ounce bottle of quinine into the Pacific Ocean off the shores of Japan while a typhoon is raging and then taking a spoonful from the ocean off the Malibu coast of Southern California and believing that it contains the essence of the spirit of the original quinine. Some people think that homeopathic medicine is based on the same principle as vaccinations. With vaccines, a very small quantity of a virus is injected into an individual to force the immune system to produce antibodies against it. But homeopathy works on a different principle. Vaccines are given to build antibodies to protect healthy people from getting a disease, whereas homeopathy treats a sick patient with the essence or spirit of a substance that produces the same symptoms as his or her disease in a healthy person. Homeopathic treatments have nothing to do with the immune system and everything to do with restoring "vital force" or "dynamis" as Hahnemann called it. Hahnemann believed that True disease was not a physical entity. Rather, illness began at the spiritual level as an aberration or imbalance of the spirit-like power, or the vital principle that animates the human body. Only later does this aberration manifest as physical illness or disease. . . ."

The Lure of New Age Holistic Health/Medicine - quoting from page 126 from the book The Mainstreaming of New Age.

Former New Age priest and author Will Baron's own testimony of how he came into the New 'Age movement speaks volumes:
Even though I had been brought up in a Christian family that attended church each week, I was still deceived by the New Agee movement's promises of health, happiness and fulfillment. I was completely led astray, eventually becoming totally immersed in the world of the occult.

For example, my own active involvement with the New Age movement began when I joined a London-based international net-working organization called "Health for the New Age". Not even knowing what the term "New Age" meant, I wasn't looking for spirit guides or occult practices. I was simply interested in finding information about alternative healing techniques for a condition that I had.
The book that changed Will Baron from a Seventh-day Adventist to a New Age occultist was Stress Disease by psychotherapist Peter Blythe. In Will's own words, "The power of a book can be phenomenal.
Baron was looking only for "healing, meaning, and harmony" in his life. Blythe's book introduced him to the New Age "holistic" concept - the idea that mind, body, and spirit are intergral components of an individual and that in order to have health, all must be in harmony, a concept shared by Christians as well. However, when New Agers speak of 'spirit', they are referring to an immortal, mystical "spirit", or "soul" associated with out-of-body experiences and reincarnation. Baron continues:
The idea of "holistic health" sounded appealing. The concept of a necessary balance beetween body, mind, and spirit made sense. I thought, maybe I can pick up osome good advice and pass it on to my friends. The last few chapters presented information on "alternative therapy" techniques for common diseases. Being familiar only with surgery and medication, I was fasinated to read of therapies such as acupunture, homeopathy, psychic surgery, chakra balancing, rebirthing, primal therapy, reiki, crystals, and bioenergetics. Descriptions of these treatments talked a lot about "energies", "balance", and 'wholeness".

Wanting to learn more about these alternative healing practices, I joined it and arranged to have a meeting with its founder.
For Baron, that was the beginning of a twelve-year journey into the occult world of the New Age movement.

Page 128
Differences between the Seventh-day Adventise wholistic health philosophy and the New Age holistic health philosopphy include:
1. The Adventist philosophy is undergirded and supported by a biblical theistic worldview, in which God is the only sovereigh Creator and Sustainer of the universe and everything in it. In New Age holistic health, there is a blending of nonbiblical worldviews, such as monism, pantheism, and animism etc.

2. The ultimate aim of Seventh-day Adventist wholistic health philosophy is to make man whole, that is, to restore him to the image of his Creator. The goal of New Age holistic health philosophy is to transform man to a new age paradigm of seeing himself as a demi-god and as a body-mind self- healer.

3. Seventh-day Adventist wholistic health philosophy teaches that humanity should depend on God for life and healing, whereas New Age holistic health teaches a dependence on mystical energies and self.

New Age holistic health/medicine is spiritually dangerous because, if its therapies and treatments work, it can create a bond of trust between the New Age practitioner and the patient, which can make him or her susceptible to the teachings and philosophies of the New Age that the practitioners introduce.

Because this danger of being drawn unsuspectingly into the New Age is very real, it is imperative that we become aware of the danger and how to avoid it.

Thank you for posting this Zita.

This concerns me in that others could also become deceived and trapped by this.

I am actually concerned about something happening that I am aware of that could have similar results.

We need to dig more into this as a learning, warning, and preventative tool.

I agree with you Daryl. So many just jump on the bandwagon of something that looks healthy and never think to understand what is behind it.

And that is what Holistic Health is all about.

When I first saw the Billboards go up I thought great!
Treating the whole body instead of the symptom. When I took a closer look at Holistic Health, I discovered
that it came from health pioneers who were into the occult, parapsychology, and Eastern mystical religions. When we allow ourselves to be involved with this type of healing we are drinking from polluted cisterns.
"Doth a fountain send forth at the same place sweet water and bitter?" (James 3:11) or "Who can bring a clean thing out of an unclean?" (Job 14:4)
So I ask the question, does it really matter if it works? Can't we just pick out the good from the bad?
How often I have had that said to me!

I believe the reason Adventists should not get involved in occult or spiritualstic activities, including New Age holistic health, is that they are based on nonbiblical philosophies, and as christians we need to be aware of the dangers.

I knew personally of an Adventist who started practising healing using these methods. He started off with a pendulum, and then moved on down the line getting himself deeper and deeper through kinesiology, iridology etc, until he moved right away from Adventisim and the truth. Sadly, he died teaching these unproven theories.
Many Adventists can't see anything wrong with Homeopathy and acupunture, but we need to look into what they are based on - oriental pantheistic conception of a cosmic energy, or magnetic fluid, where the human being is part of the cosmos and the restoration of the inbalance of this fluid would bring the person back into harmony with this universal energy.
The list includes the following:
Astrology, yoga, yin-yang, acupunture, iridology, homeopathy, reflexology, pendulum therapy, applied kinesology, and are based on nonbiblical worldviews such as monism, pantheism, animism, and naturalism, which are all diametrucally opposed to the true biblical theist worldview.

I agree. Linda did a good job here. I have 14 years experience in nursing related work; and I have studied this material too.

What has always struck me as odd, is that when I ask people why they get into this stuff, the answer is ALWAYS: "Because it works."

No body stops to think about why it works.

In regards to acupuncture. I have studied this one the most, due to a personal situation a few years ago.

I actually went to downtown Calgary to some of the better known accupuncturists, and I surprised them by just asking questions. I said I was researching accupuncture, and asked if they could help. Of course they were quite willing.

I asked them some very scrutinizing questions about the so called "meridian points" they use as "landmarks," for the acupuncture. I asked them all for proof of the existence, and specific locations of these meridian points, and I pointed out to them how no autopsy has ever, or never will reveal these meridian points. They agreed with that, or atleast most of them did; so I asked, "Well why does accupuncture work?" Some of them actually said they didn't know!

The point is, is that just because something "works" does not make it something we should do. I had never thought about homeopathy in this regards as I do not use it, but I had long thought that accupuncture was simply majik.

Ellen White had some excellent insight into these matters, that had to have been divinely inspired. How could someone with so little "education" write such stuff with such accuracy?

"An agent of the great deceiver will say or do anything to gain his object. it matters little weather he calls himself a "spiritualist," an "electric physician," or a "magnetic healer." By specious pretenses, he wins the confidence of the unwary." Counsels On health, pg.459

Very interesting information shared here, and I hope it is able to make people think about what we do and why.

A few years ago I was in a lot of back pain, and nothing seemed to be working. Then a friend ( from church) suggested that I send away for a magnetic blanket for the bed. She assured me that it worked, and I would be rid of my pain in no time!
So, I sent away for it to the tune of nz$200 and tried it. Nothing happened. I woke up morning after morning with the same pain. Then I educated myself on the magnetic healing and discovered it was all a fraud. I managed to send it back before the expired trial date and demand my money back. They were most suprised that it hadn't worked.
I then informed my friend of my findings.
It's so easy to fall in the trap when in pain.

So many Adventists have suggested Accupunture to me, and when I explain where it comes from, am ridiculed or not believed.

It's no excuse that we don't know, it's up to us to find out, be informed as you did Daved. Well done!

When I was going to physio-therapy for a problem that I had, the physio-therapist wanted to do acupuncture on me but I declined giving her the reason for my declining which she found interesting as it was the first time that she ever heard that.

For those of you who have access, you may wish to check out some of the related topics in the SDA Medical Missionary Ministry forum.